Heart attack: Experts claim a vegan diet can 'help prevent' them
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Impotence is when a man is unable to achieve an erection, which can easily be solved by taking Viagra. However, researchers have now observed a new trend – Viagra could be key in preventing a heart attack. Professor Martin Holzmann said: “Potency problems are common in older men, and now our study shows that PDE5 inhibitors [such as Viagra] may protect against heart attack and prolong life.” The lead researcher, from the Karolinska Institutet in Sweden, involved patients who had “stable coronary artery disease”.
Professor Holzmann explained: “The risk of a new heart attack is greatest during the first six months, after which we consider the coronary artery disease to be stable.”
His prior research found that men who’ve had a heart attack tolerated PDE5 inhibitors well.
In addition, he found that the vasodilators (that open up blood vessels) prolonged life expectancy and protected against new heart attacks and heart failure.
Building on this research, for his new study, he compared the effects of alprostadil and PDE5 inhibitors – both vasodilators used to help with an erection.
All the participants in his trial had either had an infarction, balloon dilation or a coronary artery bypass surgery at least six months before the onset of treatment for erectile dysfunction.
There were 16,500 men involved in the study who were treated with PDE5 inhibitors and under 2,000 who received alprostadil.
The results revealed that men taking PDE5 inhibitors lived longer and had a lower risk of heart attack, heart failure, balloon dilation and bypass surgery than those taking alprostadil.
The protection was seemingly dose-dependent, as higher dosages of PDE5 inhibitors further lowered the health risk.
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Professor Holzmann commented on the findings that presented a “casual relationship” between PDE5 inhibitors and lower health risks.
“It is possible that those who received PDE5 inhibitors were healthier than those on alprostadil, and therefore had a lower risk,” he queried.
The Karolinska Institutet in Sweden published their results in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
What’s an infarction?
An infarction is the obstruction of blood supply to an organ or region of tissue, causing it to die.
For example, a heart attack is known as a myocardial infarction, which occurs when blood supply to the heart muscle is blocked, causing some of it to die.
What’s a balloon dilation?
Stanford Health Care explained a balloon dilation is when “a small, flexible tube is inserted into a blood vessel in the groin, and guided to the inside of a heart”.
Once the tube is inserted, the deflated balloon at its tip is inflated to stretch open the blood vessel.
This will help to improve blood flow to the heart, as the arteries will be wider.
What’s coronary artery bypass surgery?
The NHS explained a coronary artery bypass is a surgical procedure to treat coronary heart disease.
“It diverts blood around narrowed or clogged parts of the major arteries to improve blood flow and oxygen supply to the heart,” the NHS added.
Most people will need to stay in hospital for at least seven days following the surgery.
This treatment isn’t a cure, but it can greatly improve symptoms of coronary heart disease, such as:
- Breathlessness
- Chest pain
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